After offensive coordinator Greg Roman strongly suggested Dixon would stay in San Francisco in 2012 (click here), Jim Harbaugh was less definitive.

Has Dixon done enough to earn a roster spot?

“He’s done a nice job,” Harbaugh said. “We talked about at that at some length after the game the other night. I think him working and not worrying like we have seen him do, just see the evidence of that, and see how that pays off. He’s doing a heck of a job.”

For his part, Dixon parroted Harbaugh – saying he’s focused on working and not worrying about his future. He believes he boosted his stock with his performance against the Broncos on Sunday. He said he didn’t make any “mental errors” – a point of emphasis with the coaching staff – and had a few “pancake” blocks as a fullback.

“I don’t worry about any of that other stuff,” Dixon said. “I go out there, put my hard hat on, go to work and let the chips fall where they may.”

** Running back Rock Cartwright, 32, is presumably battling Dixon for a roster spot. A 10-year veteran, Cartwright has 80 yards on 20 carries during the preseason.

He carved out a niche as a core special-teams player the past two seasons with the Raiders, collecting a combined 23 tackles. He’s playing on every special-teams unit in the preseason.

“I know the business,” Cartwright said. “I know how it goes. I know it’s a numbers game. I’ll go out there and try to play at a high level on Thursday and see what happens on Friday.”

** Rookie running back LaMichael James said his ankle is feeling much better and he’ll play in Thursday’s preseason finale against the Chargers. James has said he “tweaked” his ankle in the preseason opener before sustaining a mild sprain on Aug. 18 at Houston. He didn’t travel to Denver for Sunday’s game.

James has 36 yards on eight carries during the preseason.

** Wide receiver Mario Manningham will miss Thursday’s game to attend his grandfather’s funeral, which is on the same day. Manningham, who missed last week’s game at Denver, will rejoin the team after the funeral.

** Harbaugh expects Aldon Smith (hip) to be available Thursday after the outside linebacker missed the previous two games. On Monday, defensive coordinator Vic Fangio indicated selected defensive starters would play against San Diego.